Sandvik cabinet scrapers are a PITA to deal with, too. I bought one and one those Veritas adjustible burnishers, and the plain-jane scraper that came with the burnisher works a whole lot better. It's just damn near impossible to roll a decent burr on the Sandvik.
Here's my experiences on the chisel thang:
Marples Blue-handle: I bought a set 1/4-1" around 2002, before they got bought by Erwin. They're pretty good. They hold an edge reasonably well, and sharpen easily. Most flattened pretty quick, though the 3/4" took longer than the rest. The 1/8" is a bit flimsy though, and I've had some problems with poor steel. I managed to break the tip off a
1/8" cutting a 3/8" mortise in cherry. I've also had some very jagged, asymmetrical chips occur on some edges after hitting a hard knot. Definitely a bad batch of steel.Sorby: Octagonal handle, pattern makers, heavy duty mortise, etc.: These are my favorites. They are pricey, but I've had great results with them. They make one of the best 1/8" mortising chisels I've used. Very well made and tough. They take longer to flatten and sharpen than the Marples, but the results are worth it. Definitely take some
600 grit sandpaper to any edges that your hand will contact. I've gotten some unexpected cuts just from the sharp sides during paring operations.Japanese "Blue steel": It may be an Iroiyo or an Mistu... Don't remember. FWW had a review and this was rated the top. Mine's a 5/8" Great chisel, and very hard. Back is relieved for ease of flattening. Works well, but needs a steeper bezel than I'm used to, due to the hardness of the steel. Also, the relieved back limits the usefulness of the tool the way I use them.
Crown: I'm not a big fan of these. I own one. A 7/8" std chisel just to round out my selection. I'd rather see them put more money into the steel than the rosewood handles and polished blades. The polishing tends to round over the edges of the blade, including the back, requiring a non-trivial amount of grinding to get to flat metal. The steel is OK, but my Marples are better.
Two cherries: I have one backbent gouge. Not on my top 10 list. Everything but the bezel of the gouge was highly polished and seemed to round over the edges too much. Handle is made of laquered hornbeam, very hard and slippery. Bezel was rough ground. This is OK since I regrind all of the tools once I buy them, especially carving tools.
Pfiel: So far, the best carving tools reasonably available in the US. Just don't buy them from Woodshaft. There are some Canadian dealers that sell for MUCH less, including shipping and insurance. I haven't tried their bench chisels. My only complaint is that they tend to "buff the cutting edge into submission." They call it a microbevel, but it is more of a pain than a help. Once it gets dull, then major sharpening needs to take place. Also, I've noticed that the buffer seems to weaken/overheat the steel at the edge and cause it to fail faster. Once I sharpen past the microbevel, the edge holding is great and has a great edge.
Old tools/flea market/ebay, etc.: There can be some great finds. Older, wooden handled Marples are great. Old Buck Brothers ones are great as well, but have become a collector's item. What a waste. Sorby and Swan are others that can be found as well. Usually cheap.
As for usage, keep them sharp. As soon as you start to notice that they don't cut as cleanly, take a few passes on a strop charged with compound. My favorite is a product called "yellowstone." Woodcraft may still carry it. Awesome stuff. It is quicker to strop for 10 seconds every 1/2 hour than to spend time on a set of stones. If you do need to go to stones / sandpaper, etc., try the finest stone first to see if that will restore the edge. The further down in grit you go, the more grits you need to proceed through to get back to the strop, and that razor edge.
For sizes: 1", 1/4", 1/2", then expand according to need. The 1" is extremely versatile. I know professional custom/repro furniture makers that use a 1" for everything from paring tenons to carving ball and claw feet. I use some very small (1/32") for cleaning up the corners in stringing grooves, and I have a 1-1/2" that I use for cutting inlay and banding. For larger cutting operations, I use a blade from a plane. It works well for cutting parts for compass-rose inlays.
-- Blue Enamel
David wrote:
Goodie, goodie; I found a Stanley No. 4 some months back in the garage of my wife's elderly cousin who had passed away. I have (this very day) begun trying to tune it up using my new DMT DuoSharp. The Craftsman "Jack Plane" I bought 30 years ago (when I knew even less than I now know), and used practically nil, is a virtual copy of it. I 'spose I should try to tune that one, too.
day) begun trying to tune it up using my new DMT
than I now know), and used practically nil, is a
Definitely a good find, congrats, but I wouldn't waste that dmt stone on it. You should get to a junk shop and buy a rectangle or shelf of thick glass and get some Norton AO papers of 100 and 220 grit and a can of 3m super
You can buy new_old_stock Buck Bros. chisels that were made in the 60's from Craftsman's studio, San Diego.
Prometheus wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
Given that LN scrapers are like $7 each, I've sort of let the Sandviks slide to the back of the pack...
Patriarch
I highly recomend chinese HSS chisels. They are very easy to sharpen and hold their edge extremely well. Look here:
Can do that as well; I already gots the glass and paper. Thanks for the $.02.
Good post ... good info. Thanks for taking the time!
What specifically don't you like about it? My type 17 #6 is my favorite Stanley.
Chuck Vance (who has a "few" old Stanleys)
I bought the 5-pc Marples Blue Chips and like them a lot. They're not too brittle, take a good edge, and sharpen easily enough on my diamond plate. For carving, my favorite brand is Pfeil (aka Swiss Made.)
Yeah, half the time they've already been tuned for you and a bit of cleanup and sharpening is all that's needed. GREAT value!
You should have dropped by HF and gotten a $10 set of their really coarse diamond plates for that task, Rick. Save the DMT 600 grit for the finishing, then 1000/1200 WOD paper, and finalize with a strop.
Right, any time spent learning to hone your skills (groan) is time well spent.
when did you purchase them?
Unfortunatley I don't know. The galoots over on the OldTools list are always gloating about finding Stanley everlast and Buck Brothers. Hence my comment about reputation. Certainly the new Bucks are nothing to brag about.
My guess is, a Buck that's old enough to have it's wooden handle missing is a good bet.
You can find exceptional antique chisels for reasonable prices at
Few years ago. Not sure how that's relevant, however.
Yes, I sharpen them when I need to, but that's well over 5 minutes. It's not even measured in minutes.
I'm a hobbyist though.
-- Michael Campbell
Hey Chuck, so sorry to be so late for a reply. Been a while since I used it so I had to get out my memory chip and plug it in.
The lever cap is old and with usual corrosion of over 100 years, but still useable. let's say the screw in the frog has that bevel underneath it's head, tapering to the shaft, so when the cap is tightened down, the top inner curvature of the hole slides down the distance of that screw's under-bevel.
I don't know if it is worn in or made to be that way, but below that "top inner curvature of the hole" there are two side-to-side bevels which the the screw's under-bevels will meet with perfectly. So we have something of a whole 1/8" of movement from down to up, of course dragging the blade with it, but for a shorter distance distance than 1/8", which is completely mal-adjusting the setting that I gave the blade when using the brass adjuster...
At the same time, when setting the blade for depth of cut, somehow it is always skewing itself and a final skew setting is always to one side or the other. I don't know if that is the result of the frog, which stands up off the floor of the bed at the mouth (throat) area about 3/32". I can't telll if it needs to be fettled by just looking at it. But obviously it seats on the reciever and all surfaces are flat....
I polished the lever cap spring and the back of the lever as smooth as possible so both will slide instead of grip and drag, but the blade is still coated with tacky Johnson's. After I had bought the new Hock HCS for it, I sharpened it and coated it but it took a great many bodily movements to get the blade adjusted properly, and then there was ... backlash? And then the same amount of readjusting.
There, I remebered you asked the question, and there are four paragraphs of explanation. I own eight Stanley planes, the 80 scraper and the...
LV-V-LABP.
Yikes, I can see why you aren't fond if it. I'm wondering if the frog screw wasn't a retrofit. Without having a plane in front of me to look at, I don't recall any double/mating bevels on frog screws.
The part that really concerns me is where you say the frog sits proud; it should be flush with the bed.
As for the skewing of the iron, when you are setting the plane up, how tight do you have the lever screw?
So how much did you pay for this monstrosity? ;-)
I'd rather not say how many I've got. ;-)
Chuck Vance
Conan The Librarian wrote in news:dclcvs$p4f$ snipped-for-privacy@news.swt.edu:
Not really wanting to step on this conversation, but...
I have a #6, of early '60's vintage, which I bought from a tool dealer who used to frequent these parts years ago, and used to put out a monthly list to various hand plane addicts. An unused old plane, without hassle, at a fair price, in great shape, from someone who clearly knew what he was selling, and planned on selling more of them as the years went on.
Yes, I paid more than eBay prices for this tool. But I didn't have to 'win' anything, play sniping games, worry about the seller, or even do all that much homework. The tool was sent on approval, and had I not found it to be what I needed, I was responsible to send it back. Otherwise, a personal check was sufficient. There is a lot to be said for that business model, and someone who is willing to make a go of that.
I wonder what Patrick is up to these days? I've seen no email list in some time. Maybe he still has an old address of mine.
Patriarch, nearing 3 dozen handplanes, and still nowhere near the most addicted in his neighborhood...
From the July list: The August list may be some days late as I?ll be tool prowling on the day the list is supposed to be sent.
Joe in that neighborhood, too. But I'd have to look carefully to see how close.
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